Calif. man behind anti-Muslim film gets prison

LOS ANGELES — A California man who was behind an anti-Muslim film that led to violence in the Middle East has been sentenced to one year in prison for violating probation stemming from a 2010 bank fraud conviction.

Fifty-five-year-old Mark Basseley Youssef was immediately sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Court Judge Christina Snyder after he admitted four of eight alleged violations including obtaining a fraudulent California driver’s license.

Youssef served most of a 21-month prison term in the bank fraud case. Federal authorities wanted Youssef to serve two years for the violations.

None of the violations had to do with the content of “Innocence of Muslims,” a film that depicts Mohammad as a religious fraud, pedophile and a womanizer. The movie sparked violence in Libya and other parts of the Middle East, killing dozens.

Share this:

One comment

What a crock. He was jailed for free speech. This is nothng more than selective prosecution to shut down free speech. This is a warning shot from the government that anything not politically correct will not be tolerated.

Illegal immigrants who deal drugs, traffic in persons, and murder are simply deported and allowed to try again. People prosecuted for an illegal drivers license, or social security card almost never happens.

That film, if it really exists, didn’t cause the riots in the Middle East. It is simply a hatred of America. It is no coinsidence that the uders in Libya came on 9/11.